Thr3e, Dekker

• This whole blog entry is a spoiler. First, a quote from G.K. Chesterton (1925): "A novel in which a number of separate characters all turned out to be the same character would certainly be a sensational novel." There is Chesterton's futuristic (or was it a prophetic?) opinion of Dekker's sensational novel, Thr3e.

• Reading Thr3e, for me, was a great example how each person has a different experience absorbing a story. I had two main reasons for loving this book and its devices. 1-I had just memorized Romans in Bible Quizzing, 2-I had just taken abnormal psychology in college. The combination of ideas intrigued me to no end. How in the world did he connect them? If you didn't just quiz Romans, or do abnormal psych, I can see that this may not excite you.
• With Dekker, I can forgive his crazy plots. In this book especially, the message outweighs the characters and the plot itself. Technically the story should rule, but I'm on Ted's side this time. He captured a part of Romans that resonates with me. I would but I don't. I wouldn't but I do. The will, the sinful nature, and the desire to do good are battling to the death. Except that sometimes I forget that the battle is that serious.
• An intriguing element in this story is the voice of condemnation, the voice of Slater that nearly leads Kevin to self-destruction in the end. Of course I believe in the devil, but I appreciated this portrayal because sometimes the voice beating us up the hardest is really our own. The heart is deceitful and in its sinful nature is self-destructive--to the extent of eternal death. To me, Slater and his duct tape are a weird but workable portrayal of this truth. We could die in our sin, even without the devil's help, as Kevin almost dies even though their is no real "killer."
• What is the message of this book? 1. There is a part of you that will destroy you (Slater). 2. There is a part of you that wants to be saved (Samantha). 3. The human will struggles between the two (Kevin). 4. You can't overcome sin (Slater) without the help of God. 5. You can only be saved (Samantha's desire) by the grace of God.
• Once one of my friends who hated this book acted out the final scene, which did kind of ruin it. Kevin shoots himself in the leg, and is pointing the gun at his head, talking to himself. Hm. Well, I hadn't visualized it, but there it is. I guess all of this goes to prove I like weird books.